


Wire

by opal_libra



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Domestic Fluff, F/F, Fluff, Married Life, Mentions of other characters - Freeform, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-05
Updated: 2019-12-05
Packaged: 2021-02-26 02:22:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21675970
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/opal_libra/pseuds/opal_libra
Summary: After the war has been won, after Those Who Slither are but a distant memory, after Edelgard has passed the crown to her successor - Edelgard and her wife Byleth finally get to, as she'd put it so many years before, 'know the joys of idling'.// post-canon domestic Edeleth fluff. Implied/referenced Petrathea because I love them.
Relationships: Dorothea Arnault/Petra Macneary, Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth
Comments: 15
Kudos: 155





	Wire

A leaf floats down and lands on Edelgard’s nose, waking her from her half-sleep. She’s lying in the shade of a tree and there’s a book beside her head - she’d drifted off while reading it, she recalls now. A bookmark has since been tucked into it. There’s a gentle breeze blowing, and as Edelgard sits upright, she takes a moment to simply enjoy the feeling of it on her skin.

From close by, she hears the sound of someone humming. A smile spreads across her face.

“What time is it, my love?” she asks, surprised at how sleepy her own voice sounds. Byleth stops humming and turns to face Edelgard, matching her smile, albeit with a more teasing edge to it.

“You’re awake,” she says.

“Yes, and at what time?” Edelgard tries.

“Must be around 3 by now.” Byleth balances the laundry basket she’d been holding against her left hip and holds out her right hand to her wife. “Did you have a nice nap?”

“Mmm,” hums Edelgard, taking the offered hand and getting to her feet.

“I washed some of our things. I figured since my emperor was asleep anyway, I could get some chores out of the way,” Byleth says.

That seems to wake Edelgard up. “Why didn’t you wake me? I could have helped you. And I’ve told you before, I’m no emperor anymore. You, of all people-”

“-should know that,” Byleth finishes for her. “And I do. I let you sleep because you’ve earned it. You’ve spent a lifetime working hard - as a princess, as a student, as the Emperor of Adrestia… At least as my wife, you should be able to relax a little.”

It’s difficult to argue with that logic, Edelgard must admit, even though the urge to say that Byleth has worked hard too is difficult to repress. Edelgard instead turns her attention to the still-partly-full laundry basket and picks up a damp shirt, which she hangs on the laundry line they’ve strung up between two trees. The two of them fall into a comfortable silence as they finish hanging up the laundry. Finally, Byleth breaks the silence.

“El?”

“Yes, my love?”

“Did you have any dreams?”

That’s not exactly the question Edelgard had been expecting. “I… can’t quite remember. I don’t think I was sleeping deeply enough to really dream. Why do you ask?”

Byleth looks her directly in the eyes. “Because you kept saying my name.”

“I did?” Byleth nods and Edelgard looks away, her cheeks starting to heat up. “Oh, um. Well. That’s rather embarrassing.”

A beat passes, and then Byleth is bursting into laughter. Even after all these years, it’s still such a welcome sound, a reminder that Byleth’s heart now beats. Edelgard is so busy enjoying the sound of her wife’s laughter that for a moment, she forgets it’s at her expense.

“El,” says Byleth, “we’re  _ married _ . It’s hardly embarrassing to dream about your own  _ wife _ .”

As quickly as that, the blush is back again. “Byleth, please.”

“I can’t help it. You make it so easy.” Byleth finally stops laughing, though a broad grin still lingers on her face, warm and inviting. Edelgard steps over and puts a hand on her waist.

“That’s no excuse,” she replies playfully, pulling Byleth into a kiss. Byleth hums contentedly.

Later that afternoon, as the sun starts to paint their little cottage in all kinds of colors, Byleth and Edelgard take down the freshly-dried laundry and bring it inside. The clothes smell of the sunshine and the summertime. Edelgard finishes folding away the last of the clothes and heads back outside to take in the sunset; a moment later, Byleth joins her.

The two of them stand in silence for a while, simply watching the sky slowly darken as they hold hands. Then an idea strikes Byleth.

“El, give me a boost,” she says out of nowhere, turning towards one of the trees with the clothing wire attached to it. Edelgard looks at her in confusion.

“Why do you want to climb a tree all of a sudden?”

“Just help me. And then come join me.”

Never one to question her wife’s whims too much, Edelgard does as Byleth asks. The two of them climb the sturdy branches of the tree until Byleth picks out a spot and sits down. When Edelgard’s settled beside her, Byleth leans against her and laces their fingers together once more.

“So,” says Edelgard, “what brought this on?”

“I was thinking about birds,” Byleth replies. Edelgard waits patiently, but she has to nudge Byleth before she continues. “Oh, I meant because I was looking at the wire. The clothesline. You know how the birds that visit us always wind up sitting on it?”

Edelgard nods. Whenever their friends send messenger birds, they can always be found resting on the line. Hubert’s trusty crow in particular likes the part near the tree they’re sitting in now.

“Well, I suddenly realized that the birds must get a really nice view from up there. So I thought we should try it out.” Byleth pauses again. “You know, since we used to be Eagles and all that.”

“Have you been writing to Alois again?” Edelgard asks. Byleth snorts.

“Maybe. So has Petra, in my defense - she’s very proud of her puns.”

Now it’s Edelgard’s turn to laugh. “That explains the distress calls I’ve been getting from Dorothea.”

For a while, the two of them sit up there, making lighthearted conversation about their friends and what they’re up to. By the time they finally climb back down, the first stars have started to come out. Byleth heads into the cottage; Edelgard pauses on the doorstep and looks out at the scenery one more time.

Once upon a time, she had longed for the joys of idling. Now, she just longs to understand the way her wife’s mind works.

**Author's Note:**

> At some point I do want to write something longer for this ship. For now, I hope you enjoyed this short bit of fluff! Feel free to leave comments :)


End file.
